Inside Unmanned Systems

AUG-SEP 2018

Inside Unmanned Systems provides actionable business intelligence to decision-makers and influencers operating within the global UAS community. Features include analysis of key technologies, policy/regulatory developments and new product design.

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Q+A
82 August/September 2018 unmanned systems
inside
Q G F
Q:
How can manufacturers have their
hardware considered for upcoming
demonstrations?
a:
Every year or every other year, we'll
be doing a follow-on to this and the
follow-ons hopefully will be to look even
TIM BENNETT is the program manager for
air-based technologies for the Department
of Homeland Security's Science and
Technology Division. He has more than 30
years experience managing, designing,
manufacturing and testing intelligence,
surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) and
signal intelligence (SIGINT) systems for
manned and unmanned airborne systems.
Q:
What need does the Robotic Aircraft Sensor Program (RASP)
demonstration program meet?
a:
Right now it actually addresses several different questions or
needs within DHS (Department of Homeland Security) and it
also answers some questions for the suppliers we bring out for this.
The first one is for our components. Due to the fact that we're not using
small UAS yet in the field we're doing a lot of demonstrations, evaluations
of them. …So the first part about this, and this falls back to the RAPS 1,
the Robotic Aircraft for Public Safety program, is to evaluate what UAS
are out there and which ones work best doing different types of tasks.
All (DHS) components are working toward an acquisition program…
The second part of this, for us, is we're looking at six different scenarios,
both night and day, and each one has a little bit different niche to it or
difference in requirements for it. So we're going to be able to go out there
and look at all the different sensor packages. …The third real benefit to
this is…the suppliers come out and they get to see where they thought
something was working real well (and) it really didn't work that well—or
something they thought was mediocre really worked well. So now they
know where to put their research dollars.
more at sensors. And those would be the
times when RFIs (Requests for Information)
come out because we'll be publishing them
on Fed Biz Ops. And so if they look for it,
they'll find it.
Q:
The technology you're looking at,
does it have to be fully developed?
a:
Right now for the stuff we're doing
we definitely need higher TRL
(Technology Readiness Levels). We'd like to
get something at the six or seven level.
Q:
Who pays for the testing?
a:
We go to Camp Shelby for this and
I cover getting the base's support.
I get the airtime set up. I get the actors.
The assessments, the report writing are all
covered under me or under DHS. Then what
the suppliers do, all they have to cover is their
attending it and bringing their equipment in.
So they pay for the shipping, their per diems
and equipment costs to be able to go off and
do the demonstrations.
Q:
What's next?
a:
I'll probably, in the June-July
timeframe of 2019, put another
(Request for Information) out to start doing
exercises in 2020. The good part (is) …by
then I think at least Coast Guard and CBP
(Customs and Border Patrol) will have an
acquisition program in place so we can really
then concentrate on sensors for it.
Five Good Questions
TIM BENNETT